Info-Mac Archive File Name and Placement Conventions
revision 17 Jul 93: DRAFT VERSION
--- File Names ----------------------------------------------------------
File Names Must:
Contain ONLY lowercase letters, numbers, and dashes.
Begin with a letter, not a number or dash.
Be 50 characters or less with its directory name(s).
Use dashes where words are separated (but not too much).
Exclude periods from version numbers.
Exclude references to compression software.
End with one of the following suffixes:
.hqx Binhexed
.txt text
.shar Unix shell archives
.uu Unix uuencoded
.bin MacBinary format (rarely used)
.etx Setext (only for Tidbits issues)
Some examples:
DrawNothing 1.41 -> draw-nothing-141.hqx
doIt Now 0.9b -> doit-now-09b.hqx
QuickTime 2.0 -> quicktime-20.hqx
Specific File Format
To identify the format of the file more specifically than the suffix
does, use an extension JUST BEFORE the suffix. Some common ones:
-msdos MS-DOS program
-unix Unix program
-ps Postscript code
-etx Setext text format
-msw Microsoft Word
-fkey Mac fkey utility
-hc Hypercard stacks
Descriptive Extensions
Some info about files should be placed in file name extensions:
-demo incomplete version for demonstration purposes
-updt a utility to update a file to a newer version
References to Common Mac Things
System software: sys607, sys7, sys701, sys71, sys7-finder
Not: system-7, system-seven, system7, finder7, finder-7
Mac models: mac-512, mac-plus, mac-se, mac-ii, se30, iici, lcii
mac-portable, powerbook, centris-610, quadra-700
Not: power-book, pb, ii-vx,
Other software: resedit, quicktime, mactcp
System operations: startup, shutdown
Date Format
The format for dates is
"file-name-YY-MM.???"
where YY and MM are the numbers of the year and month,
respectively. If necessary "-DD" (the day) may be added
after the month.
Conventions for Specific Directories
app/ Filemaker stuff should begin with "filemaker-"
per/ File names should include an issue number or date (not both)
dev/a4d/ File names should end in one of the following extensions:
-ext externals
-demo commercial demos
-db example databases
-info documentation and information
-util utilities that don't plug directly into 4D or a database
-src native 4d source code
dev/src/ File names should end in one of the following extensions:
-c C source code
-pas Pascal source code
-plog Prolog source code
info/ Software and hardware company info should begin with "vendor-"
info/hdwr/ Specific mac model info should begin with the model name
--- File Placement ---------------------------------------------------
Things should be archived by topic as much as possible. Some
directories are more specific than others, text/ and prn/ are quite
definite, whereas app/ and cfg/ are more general. Things should be
placed in the most specific directory appropriate, ie: printer drivers
in prn/, not cfg/.
Generally, information files about software should be archived
together with applications, whereas data (such as sounds and pictures)
should be archived separately. For example, a picture goes in grf/,
the utility to display it goes in grf/util/ and a review or collection
of tips about that utility also goes in grf/util/.
Hypercard stacks, desk accessories and other apps that provide info
ABOUT MACS should be placed in the appropriate info/ or topic
directory, not in card/ or app/.
--- Archive Directories ------------------------------------------------
A directory at the archive has many components:
+ An entry in directory-contents.txt with a description of the
directory's intended contents.
+ The directory itself, which is a short 3 or 4 character name.
+ A link to the directory that resides in the same directory as the
real directory. Its name is descriptive and capitalized. If its
name is two words normally separated by a space, the 2nd word is also
capitalized. If its name is 2 words that represent different
concepts, the 2nd word is capitalized and separated from the 1st by a
dash.
+ An abstract file in the directory (an empty one must be created when
a directory is installed).
+ A link to the abstract file that resides in help/abs/. Its name
begins with the descriptive name of the parent directory (if any)
followed by the descriptive name of the directory. Dashes are used in
this name to separate words as they are in normal archive files.
+ A directory in the backmod/ar/ hierarchy whose name is the same as
the directory's actual name.